Empty promises – New York corporate subsidies lack accountability

…and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. New York gives away a total of $7 billion in corporate subsidies every year through an alphabet soup of economic agencies— and few require companies to actually agree to create jobs or public benefit.

“At a time when state and local governments are cutting the services that New Yorkers depend on, we simply cannot afford to sacrifice our tax base in return for a promise of jobs that fails to materialize,” said Mario Cilento, President of the New York State AFL-CIO. “When businesses accept our tax dollars, they also accept an inherent obligation to deliver for the public, not just their own bottom lines. Troublingly, this report reveals that there is inconsistent and insufficient transparency and accountability built into the vast array of economic development schemes operating throughout our State. Working men and women and all New Yorkers deserve better.”